Relationships, whether it’s platonic or romantic, can be complicated.
While everything starts out fine at first, and it usually does, over time one person in the relationship may want more than the other person.
Sometimes, both of them may want the same thing in the relationship, but their personalities may clash.
A complicated relationship is when two people in a relationship are having problems that negatively affect their relationship.
And if these problems are not fixed, the relationship may eventually end. Let’s look at types of complicated relationships and what contributes to their problems.
Table of Contents
Beginning as friends with benefits
Friends with benefits types of relationships can quickly and easily become complicated.
One of you may start developing strong feelings, while the other person may want no more than to continue being friends with benefits.
The other person may have some feelings but not strong enough to have a committed relationship.
And as a result, this situation will definitely yield to tension and arguments.
Defining boundaries is mandatory
It’s important not to agree with something that you are not comfortable with. Say, for instance, your partner wants to have an open relationship.
If you agree with it but are really not cool with it, you can get jealous when seeing your partner out with someone else.
Your partner must know your boundaries so that they know what not to do. Otherwise, you can end up heartbroken without seeing them.
Once you put all your issues on the table, the response can go in one of two ways.
You may end up with no problems or you may fight for dominance until one of you breaks off the relationship for good.
Whatever the outcome is, you’ll have peace of mind, even if you may have left you heartbroken for a moment.
If you don’t define boundaries because you don’t want to risk losing the relationship, you will be miserable trying to hold on to your partner.
It’s best to put it all on the table, and if they leave, they weren’t the one anyway.
Families not approving
When other people who don’t approve of the relationship are part of your union, there will be some conflict.
So, you must talk with your partner about it and find some kind of middle ground when it comes to dealing with family.
You could also try your best not to be around those family members.
In some cases, however, you may have to spend time around those family members, especially if your relationship lasts for a long time.
Nevertheless, you can still spend as little time around them as possible.
No open communication
Communication is mandatory for a successful relationship. When one of you doesn’t want to communicate, the relationship can fall apart.
Often, the person may not know how to communicate without breaking the relationship. And if that’s the case, you should practice.
You must communicate, especially when it comes to telling your partner that things are getting to be too much.
You two must also communicate about your needs, wants, feelings, and boundaries.
Being involved in one another’s lives
Not being involved in your partner’s life can lead to a complicated relationship, even if the relationship was casual.
You must know how to get to your partner, know where they are at, and know what’s happening. Through this, you can develop a bond by knowing the basics.
Staying in the same cycle
A relationship that is caught in a negative cycle will cause heartbreak if it isn’t addressed. If it continues without the negative aspects being handled, the heartbreak can be even more difficult as emotions like resentment and unhappiness fester.
A Long-distance relationship
These types of relationships can easily become complicated. You may feel like distance won’t keep you apart, but these types of relationships are usually hard to maintain.
There are many people nowadays who have made their long-distance relationships work even if they live in completely different states.
Nevertheless, a majority of these relationships are usually harder to maintain than relationships where the couple lives near each other.
Many people may think that using messaging apps and social media will make this type of relationship easier, but they won’t.
This is due to not being able to convey the tone that you mean to deliver to your partner through messaging alone. And because of this, there are more misunderstandings.
Now, that you know how a relationship is complicated, you may be able to do or undo some things that are contributing to the complications.
Communication is crucial
As we’ve mentioned before, proper communication is crucial to healing complicated relationships. If you don’t communicate, don’t expect to get any improvement in your relationship.
If you are not the best communicator, you should first write down all that you need to tell your partner, as unchecked or unprocessed emotions can disrupt proper communication.
To help you organize your thoughts, use bullet points as you write things down and reflect on what you write.
Then, rehearse a little, so you can communicate all that’s in your heart naturally and not robotically.
Be committed
Communication alone cannot heal a complicated relationship, and there are other important things that you should be doing to help. One of those things that can change your relationship for the better is to be committed.
Don’t sit and wait for everything to fall apart on its own. If this person is the one, you must be committed to spending quality time together, giving loving attention to your partner, and putting effort into nurturing your relationship.
Having said this, just know that no relationship is easy. You always have to work to keep your relationship healthy.
So, if there are any challenges, fix them. And over time, if this person is truly the one, your relationship will grow and become stronger.
Ask yourself, is it really worth it?
The statement “anything worth having is worth fighting for” couldn’t be any truer when it comes to that special someone.
Otherwise, is that person really that special someone? If the person is someone worth keeping, then, by all means, fight for the relationship.
Just know that relationships go through cycles, and you have to be willing to withstand and act accordingly when nurturing the relationship.
Show how much you care
Love is an action word. So, in addition to communicating, you must be in tune with your partner to determine how they really feel.
Sometimes, love gets lost deeply in all the chaos.
So, show your partner that you care, especially when you start experiencing complex emotions. Your partner can’t read your mind. Show actions and use words to convey your message.
Get support
As mentioned above, a relationship can be complicated for various reasons. Having a family that doesn’t approve of or having a lack of support are some of those reasons.
This isn’t easy in a relationship. You must have a support system that will help your relationship to be more strong and secure.
Some friends may be good for this, or even an organization in your community, like a pastor at a church. Seeking help from relationship experts or counselors is also a great choice if it is available to you.
Efforts must be reciprocated
While you are doing all this work in nurturing your relationship, your partner must return the effort if they about the relationship.
Maybe the partner’s feelings are not that strong yet. And if that’s the case, sooner or later, your partner must also show that they care and begin nurturing the relationship.
As they say, it takes two to tango. So, for this dance to last, you both have to put in the effort.
If your partner is not putting in the same effort, then they may not care as much as you do about the relationship.
Final Thoughts
A complicated relationship is when two people in a relationship are having problems that negatively affect the relationship.
And if these problems are not fixed, the relationship may eventually end. Having said this, you must determine if this relationship is worth it.
If you decide that your partner is the one, then you should adhere to the steps above to make sure that you work through your problems and foster a healthy, happy relationship.